Jazz Cruises Conversations

Lee Mergner
  • 5.0 (16)
  • MUSIC INTERVIEWS
  • UPDATED BIMONTHLY

Jazz Cruises Conversations features full length interviews with jazz artists recorded on The Jazz Cruise, Blue Note at Sea, Botti at Sea and The Smooth Jazz Cruise, all produced by Jazz Cruises, LLC.

  1. 11/11/2025

    #108: Emmet Cohen with Benny Benack III

    This episode from the recent Journey of Jazz cruise features an interview of pianist Emmet Cohen by his longtime friend Benny Benack III. Emmet shared the story of his journey from being a student at the University of Miami to being a regular, then host, on The Jazz Cruise.  He also talked about his Masters Legacy series of recordings with his elders. And, of course, he explained the creation and evolution of his popular Emmet's Place online concert series.

    53 min

  2. 11/04/2025

    #107: Wycliffe Gordon with Sean Jones

    In this interview from the recent Journey of Jazz cruise, trumpeter Sean Jones talked with fellow brassman Wycliffe Gordon about his storied life in music. The trombonist talked about his early years playing music in churches, his introduction to jazz, his experience with playing in the McDonald's High School All-Star Band, and his work with Wynton Marsalis in both Wynton's Septet and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra.

    55 min

  3. 10/27/2025

    #106: Niki Haris "Lift Thine Eyes" Listening Party

    This listening party session during the Journey of Jazz cruise featured Niki Haris spinning and talking about several tracks from her album "Lift Thine Eyes."  The stellar vocalist talked about the inspiration behind the music and even sang along with the tracks.

    1h 6m

  4. 10/21/2025

    #105: John Clayton & Jeff Hamilton with Marcus Miller

    This interview from the Journey of Jazz cruise was hosted by Marcus Miller, co-host of that sailing, who talked with John Clayton and Jeff Hamilton, longtime co-leaders of the Clayton Hamilton Jazz Orchestra.  Their Grammy Award-winning big band performed during the cruise and the two also played with their old friend Diana Krall.   Marcus talked with John and Jeff about the group's formation and long 40-year history.  And he opened the floor to numerous questions from the audience.

    45 min

  5. 10/14/2025

    #104: Sullivan Fortner with Lee Mergner

    This interview with pianist Sullivan Fortner was recorded on the Journey of Jazz cruise last month, Lee Mergner, the host, simply gave him prompts with the names of various people in his life.  He took right to it, starting with his parents, and moving on to Ellis Marsalis, Fred Hersch, Roy Hargrove, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Cecile and many others. As you'll hear, Sullivan is not only a great storyteller but an adept mimic, able to do the voices of so many people. And a musical mimic as well. In response to a prompt about Oscar Peterson, he even played the piano for us in the mode of Oscar.

    50 min

  6. 10/06/2025

    #103: Dee Dee Bridgewater with Marcus Miller

    This conversation came from the recent Journey of Jazz cruise on the West Coast.  The co-host of that cruise, Marcus Miller, interviewed the charismatic and expressive Dee Dee Bridgewater, who shared stories from her remarkable career of more than five decades.  Dee Dee talked about how she approaches singing a song, about her love for Nancy Wilson, about living in Paris for many years, about her unique connection to Josephine Baker, about the career of her daughter China Moses, about working with Thad Jones, and finally, about the mentoring organization for women that she ran called the Woodshed Network.  If there is a theme throughout the interview, it's about facing challenges and overcoming adversity.

    43 min

  7. 09/29/2025

    #102: Alonzo Bodden & Marcus Miller

    This freewheeling conversation between two longtime friends, bassist Marcus Miller and comedian Alonzo Bodden, took place on the Journey of Jazz cruise that sailed from Vancouver to Los Angeles with stops in Victoria, BC and San Francisco.  The two decided to interview each other, with Alonzo asking Marcus about music and Marcus asking Alonzo about comedy.

    54 min

  8. 04/02/2025

    #101: Dan Wilson with Christian McBride

    This interview with guitarist Dan Wilson by his friend and mentor Christian McBride was taped during The Jazz Cruise for broadcast on the radio show "The Lowdown: Conversations with Christian" on SiriusXM's Real Jazz channel. This LEARN session covers their joint history, as well as Dan's early musical development, playing in church.  In keeping with the format of Christian's show, the two also play some improvised music together.

    1h 5m
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
16 Ratings

About

Jazz Cruises Conversations features full length interviews with jazz artists recorded on The Jazz Cruise, Blue Note at Sea, Botti at Sea and The Smooth Jazz Cruise, all produced by Jazz Cruises, LLC.

Information

  • Creator
    Lee Mergner
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2025
  • Episodes
    100
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    2025 ©Signature Cruise Experiences
  • Show Website
    Jazz Cruises Conversations

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